The Xeno Arena update added an unexpected but addictive mechanic to No Man's Sky — Pokémon-style pet battles that play out on a special game table.
The game's infinite procedural universe turns into a giant preserve: any tamed creatures — from tiny critters to bizarre predators from distant planets — can be trained and pitted against other players' creations.
According to Hello Games, the community has already poured countless hours into the pet arena — and the mode served as a warm-up for the far larger The Swarm update that followed.